Next.js Server Event Analytics

Implementation evidence

Next.js Server Event Analytics: from boundary to verified row

Use Next.js Server Event Analytics at a controlled application boundary, keep the event contract small, and verify a known outcome before building aggregate views.

1
Choose the outcome
Server action outcomes
2
Define the contract
route_template or action_name
3
Instrument the boundary
Keep Telemetry calls in route handlers, server actions, or other server-only modules.
4
Verify the evidence
Exercise a known fixture, then inspect project_created for one correctly typed terminal row.

Before you start

Prerequisites and boundaries

A server-only TELEMETRY_API_KEY environment variable
The telemetry-sh package initialized in server code
A named workflow whose success and failure definitions are documented

Delivery setup

Install and initialize server-side

Import telemetry-sh in server-only code and initialize it once with process.env.TELEMETRY_API_KEY. Keep ingestion credentials out of browser bundles, client-visible environment variables, source control, logs, and exception messages.

nextjs-install

npm installation

bash

npm install telemetry-sh

1Prepare one reusable server-side delivery client with bounded network behavior.
2Add the outcome event at the success, failure, retry, or timeout boundary.
3Send controlled fixtures and inspect the stored rows before enabling an alert.

Snippet

Start with one structured event

Add this shape where the workflow completes, fails, or retries. Then build the dashboard from real fields.

nextjs

Next.js Server Event Analytics event

javascript

export async function POST(request) {
  const startedAt = performance.now();
  const result = await createProject(request);

  await telemetry.log("project_created", {
    route_template: "/api/projects",
    status: "success",
    status_code: 201,
    latency_ms: Math.round(performance.now() - startedAt),
    account_id: result.accountId,
    source: "onboarding",
  });

  return Response.json({ id: result.id }, { status: 201 });
}

Event contract

route_template or action_name

status, status_code, and error_type

latency_ms plus safe account or request identifiers

Implementation checkpoints

Checkpoint 1

Keep Telemetry calls in route handlers, server actions, or other server-only modules.

Checkpoint 2

Record an event after the workflow has a known outcome, including handled failures.

Checkpoint 3

Do not put API keys in NEXT_PUBLIC variables or send raw form data.

Verification

Prove the event arrived

Run this after exercising known success and failure cases. Replace the fallback table name if your final event contract differs from the snippet.

nextjs-verification

Next.js Server Event Analytics verification query

sql

SELECT *
FROM project_created
ORDER BY timestamp_utc DESC
LIMIT 20;

Confirm one terminal row per logical outcome, with the expected status, identifiers, units, and UTC time.

Inspect the inferred schema and verify that retries do not change field types or generate a new logical event ID.

Search the stored fields for credentials, raw payloads, prompts, private content, and unbounded error messages.

Exercise a provider timeout, ingestion rejection, and process shutdown before treating the dashboard as complete.

Implementation references

Review the event contract, data-safety guidance, and upstream primary documentation before enabling a new production path.

JavaScript SDK Sensitive-data controls Next.js Route Handlers

Production boundary

Keep the outcome event small and recoverable

This pattern provides

A bounded, SQL-ready outcome beside the upstream workflow.
Stable fields for dashboards, alerts, and cross-event correlation.
A fixture-driven path for validating success, failure, retry, and timeout behavior.

This pattern does not provide

An OTLP exporter, automatic collection pipeline, or replacement for detailed traces and diagnostic logs.
Exactly-once delivery merely because the payload contains an event ID.
Permission to collect raw provider payloads, user content, credentials, or regulated data.

Delivery and idempotency Batching and shutdown Troubleshoot ingestion

Event schema starting points

Review the row grain, emit boundary, required types, privacy classes, example payload, and validation checklist before adapting a query or snippet to production.

Product lifecycle7 fields